Living here, taxed here
Florida property taxes & the homestead exemption: the resident’s cheat sheet
Yes, Florida has property tax — it’s how a state with no income tax keeps the lights on. But residents get a stack of discounts and caps that reward planting your flag. Here’s how the whole system works, in one sitting.
Pictured: 1435 Olympic Club Boulevard, Champions Gate — an active listing
How the bill is built
Your county property appraiser sets a just value each January 1; exemptions come off; the local millage rates (county, city, schools, water districts) multiply what’s left. Statewide, effective rates hover in the rough neighborhood of 0.7–1.0% of market value — TRIM notices arrive each August like clockwork, and bills follow in November with early-payment discounts for the punctual.
The homestead stack, in order
- Up to $50,000 off assessed value on your primary residence (the second $25,000 skips school taxes)
- Save Our Homes: once homesteaded, your assessed value can rise at most 3% a year — no matter what the market does
- Portability: move within Florida and carry up to $500,000 of that accumulated Save Our Homes benefit to the next house
- Extra exemptions for seniors, veterans, first responders, and surviving spouses in many counties
- File once with your county appraiser by March 1 — it’s free, online, and takes minutes
What investors and snowbirds pay instead
Non-homestead property — your rental villa, the vacation condo, the second home that stays a second home — gets none of the exemptions but does get its own guardrail: assessed value on non-homestead property can’t rise more than 10% a year (school levies excepted). Buyers should also know the reset: caps reset to market value when a property changes hands, so the seller’s charming old tax bill is not your tax bill. We run the real number on every property we show.
About those “Florida is ending property taxes” headlines
You’ve seen the searches — is Florida getting rid of property tax? As of mid-2026 the honest answer is: it’s a live political debate, with proposals to cut or abolish homestead property taxes circulating in Tallahassee, and any constitutional change requiring 60% of voters to approve. Nothing has been repealed. Our advice: make decisions on today’s rules, enjoy the headlines as a possible bonus, and check back with us — we track this so you don’t have to.
Questions people ask
The honest FAQ
Yes — counties, cities, and school districts levy it, and it funds most local services in a state with no income tax. Effective rates typically land under about 1% of market value, with real discounts for permanent residents.
Make a Florida home your permanent residence, file with your county appraiser by March 1, and up to $50,000 comes off your assessed value — then Save Our Homes caps future assessment growth at 3% a year for as long as you homestead the property.
When you sell one homesteaded Florida home and establish another, you can transfer up to $500,000 of the assessment reduction you’d built up — so decades of the 3% cap don’t vanish when you finally trade the family house for the condo on the harbor.
Not yet, and possibly never — but it is genuinely under debate, with abolition and cut proposals floated for the 2026 ballot cycle and beyond. Any change needs 60% voter approval as a constitutional amendment. Buy on current rules; treat reform as upside.
Bills mail November 1 and are due by March 31, with early-payment discounts starting at 4% in November and shrinking each month. Most mortgaged owners pay through escrow without lifting a finger.
No homestead — that’s reserved for your permanent residence — but non-homestead property gets the 10% annual assessment cap, and its expenses (property tax included) are generally deductible against rental income. Different columns, different math; we’ll walk you through both.
From the live feed
Homes to homestead (or not — we’ll do the math)
$685,000
6 bd4.5 ba3,858 sqft
1432 Olympic Club Boulevard
Championsgate 80 Ph Ii · Champions Gate, FL 33896
$599,999
6 bd6 ba3,339 sqft
9038 Stinger Drive
Championsgate, Stoneybrook South · Davenport, FL 33896
$799,900
6 bd4.5 ba3,858 sqft
1435 Olympic Club Boulevard
Championsgate 80 Ph Ii · Champions Gate, FL 33896